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+233546829126Everyone with asthma, even mild asthma, benefits from regular use of inhaled corticosteroids. When used regularly, inhaled corticosteroids reduce inflammation and mucous in the airways, making the lungs less sensitive to triggers. They are also the best defence against possible long-term lung damage and airway remodelling.
It can take weeks for an inhaled corticosteroid to reduce the inflammation in your airways, so be patient. The longer you are using it, the less you will need to use your reliever medication, since your asthma will be better controlled.
Inhaled corticosteroids are not for the relief of sudden-onset asthma symptoms.When you are feeling better, do not stop taking the inhaled corticosteroid. Instead, talk to your healthcare provider about adjusting the dose. The inhaled corticosteroid is keeping your asthma under control. If you stop taking it, the inflammation and your symptoms will return.
The corticosteroids that are inhaled to treat asthma today are considered safe. This is because the medicine, which is breathed in through a puffer, goes directly into the lungs where it reduces inflammation in the airways. A steroid tablet (oral corticosteroids) that is swallowed has more side effects because a large amount goes into the blood stream and is carried to other parts of the body.
Side effects from inhaled corticosteroids are minor when the proper amount is taken. The common side effects of inhaled corticosteroids are hoarse voice, sore throat, and a mild throat infection called thrush (yeast infection). Sore throat and thrush are commonly caused by poor puffer technique. Show your healthcare provider how you use your puffer. You may need a spacer if you are using a type of puffer known as a metered dose inhaler (MDI). Rinsing out your mouth with water after every dose of inhaled corticosteroids will also help reduce these side effects.
There are a number of misconceptions about inhaled corticosteroids. For example, some people mistakenly believe that they are the same as the anabolic steroids that are sometimes abused by athletes.
Corticosteroids and anabolic steroids are two completely different medications. The term "steroid" in both names just means that one piece of their chemical structure is similar. The other parts of the two molecules are different from each other, so their effects on the body are also very different.
Anabolic steroids are variations of the male hormone testosterone. On the other hand, the steroids used in asthma are corticosteroids, which are closely related to hormones that your body naturally produces to fight inflammation in the various tissues of the body. Corticosteroids do not produce the same kinds of side effects as anabolic steroids. With inhaled corticosteroids, you are taking a very small dose of the medication that goes exactly to where it is needed in your lungs, so the risk of it producing side effects elsewhere in your body is very low or none at all.
Corticosteroids are the steroids used to treat asthma. Corticosteroids do not build muscle or enhance performance. Corticosteroids are hormones that your body naturally produces. When your doctor prescribes an inhaled corticosteroid, they are giving a very small amount of this same hormone, to reduce the inflammation in the airways.